Strange and Beautiful
by DrarryForever-x
Summary: Scorpius Malfoy has been absolutely, undeniably and irrevocably in love with Albus Potter since he was eleven years old. He is perfectly happy to watch from the sidelines but his best friend, one Rose Weasley, has decided that she’s had enough.
1. Chapter 1

_**Summary:**____Scorpius Malfoy has been absolutely, undeniably and irrevocably in love with Albus Potter since he was eleven years old. He is perfectly happy to watch from the sidelines but his best friend, one Rose Weasley, has decided that she's had enough. Cue anonymous owls, a stolen bottle of Firewhisky, a double detention and a party in the Slytherin dungeon. This plan is 100% foolproof. Possibly._

_**Rating:**__ M_

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own any of the characters or settings that you recognise; they belong to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. I am not making any money from this story. The lyrics belong to Aqualung._

_**A/N:**____Most of you will know me, primarily, as a Harry/Draco writer but I've recently discovered the beauty of Albus/Scorpius. This is my first attempt at an AS/S fic - it's based on a quote from "Strange and Beautiful" by Aqualung and takes place throughout the kids' sixth year. Enjoy x_

_---_

_I've been watching your world from afar, I've been trying to be where you are and I've been secretly falling apart, unseen. To me, you're strange and you're beautiful. You'd be so perfect with me but you just can't see, you turn every head but you don't see me._

Scorpius Malfoy looked up from his book at the sound of raucous laughter from the other side of the Great Hall, where his gaze was met with the smug face of James Potter. He was surrounded by his usual group of friends, admirers and general hangers-on, who were laughing appreciatively at something he'd said. He had his younger brother, Albus, in a headlock and was currently administering what looked like an incredibly painful noogie. The small, dark haired boy managed to struggle free and aimed a hefty kick at the Gryffindor, and every male in the room groaned as his foot made contact with the taller boy's crotch, sending him to the floor in a crumpled heap of red and black robes. Albus blushed slightly as his friends cheered and all eyes turned to him. Slinging his bag over his shoulder, he stepped over his whimpering brother and hastily exited the Hall, a group of friends in tow. How Scorpius desperately wished that he could be part of that group, in such close proximity to the beautiful Slytherin. Even from this distance, he could see the sparkle in those emerald eyes as the raven-haired boy turned to look back at James, and the blonde felt his heart skip a beat.

"Not staring at Al again, are you?" Rose Weasley sighed as she took a seat beside him.

"Of course not!" he said hastily, avoiding his best friend's gaze.

"Just go over and say hello," she suggested casually, ignoring the scandalised look he was giving her. "He knows who you are so it wouldn't be completely weird. Plus it's really distracting watching you staring at my cousin."

"I wasn't staring at him!" he said hotly.

"Oh, come off it, Scorp," she scoffed. "You've been mooning around after him every day since you were eleven, why would today be any different?"

"Excuse me, Malfoys do not _moon_!" he cried indignantly, earning him a few amused glances from his housemates. He lowered his voice. "I was merely trying to determine where that offensive racket was coming from as it was distracting me from my reading. Unsurprisingly, it had something to do with your idiot of a cousin."

"Doesn't it always?" Rose cast a disapproving look at the other side of the Hall, where Professor Longbottom was helping James to his feet. "One would think that he would have gotten over the fact that Al is in Slytherin by now. Nobody else in the family has a problem with it – even my dad has stopped winding him up about it."

"No matter how often the teachers tell us that we are only separated as a _matter of tradition_, it can't be denied that it is still viewed as important, especially by prominent Wizarding families. Merlin, the look on Father's face when he found out that I was in Ravenclaw..." Scorpius shuddered. "I thought he was going to pass out."

"My mum was really proud of me and dad said that he was too but I could tell that he was disappointed. But then Hugo, the second bloody coming of Christ, was sorted into Gryffindor and all was right in the world once more," Rose said bitterly. "James just takes any opportunity he can get to tease Al about it. Hugo is exactly the same with me."

Right on cue, Rose's younger brother threw himself down in a seat across from them, chomping loudly on an apple. Scorpius threw him a disgusted look.

"Can't you close your mouth when you eat?"

"Nope," the Gryffindor replied, taking another enormous bite.

The blonde muttered something that sounded like_, "neanderthal,"_ but the redhead chose to ignore him.

"What are you swots up to today then? Care for a game of Quidditch?"

"Busy," replied Scorpius, who had returned his attention to the tome in front of him.

"You're reading at the breakfast table? What is this?" Scorpius made to move the book out of Hugo's reach but the younger boy's Quidditch-honed reflexes proved too much for him and the book was snatched from his grip. "This isn't even school work! It's just... a book. You're reading when you don't have to!" he threw the book down as if it would contaminate him and got to his feet. "Fucking Ravenclaws," he muttered, shaking his head as he wandered over to his friends.

"He's such a tosser," Scorpius seethed. Rose tutted and glared at her brother's retreating form.

"We'll be on the pitch if you girls decide you've had enough of your precious _reading_," the fourth-year called over his shoulder, swaggering out of the Hall with his broom in hand.

"Who brings their broom down to breakfast?" Rose snorted. She rolled her eyes as a group of giggling fourth-year girls rushed to Hugo's side, fawning over him and batting their eyelashes. "What a bloody poser."

"Who would want a bunch of simpering girls following you everywhere you went anyway?" Scorpius wrinkled his nose in disgust. "I can't think of anything creepier."

"I'm sure you wouldn't complain if you had a group of boys all fighting for your attention though," Rose countered, arching an eyebrow.

"Well, that would be... it's just... that's completely different! Not to mention irrelevant. I'm awful at Quidditch," the blonde scowled. "And everything else that one tends to associate with hoards of randy groupies."

"Randy?" Rose sniggered. "What is this, the 1950's?"

Scorpius flushed. "You know what I mean."

"Yes, I do. You're bitter about the fact that only the Quidditch players get any action around here and everyone else is left to find the least repugnant person that'll have them, or else wank themselves blind," she said matter-of-factly. "Don't think that you're the only person in that situation."

"Well, Rose, you could pretty much walk up to any boy in the school and they wouldn't turn you down. Boys are horrible creatures that just take whatever's on offer, regardless of whether or not they fancy them. Or even like them as a person," he added, frowning.

"You're a boy. Does that mean you're a horrible creature?" she grinned.

"Obviously not. Does this look like the face of someone who's taking whatever's on offer?" he pointed to himself. "In case you hadn't noticed, there is a distinct lack of gay boys at this school."

Rose patted his arm sympathetically. "There has to be someone that we can find for you. Is there anyone you like?" He gave her a withering look. "Anyone apart from Al?"

"Nope, only him. The same way that it's been _only him_ every day for five years," he sighed and her brown eyes suddenly sparkled mischievously. He eyed her warily. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"No reason. Come on," she said briskly, grabbing his arm and pulling him to his feet.

"What are you doing?" he barely had time to pick up his book before he was dragged from the Ravenclaw table to the Entrance Hall. "Rosie, where are we going?"

"The Quidditch pitch," she said simply, her eyes still twinkling. She glanced around the Entrance Hall as though looking for someone and Scorpius had a feeling that no good could come of whatever she was planning. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks and her face broke into a grin.

"Al! Fancy seeing you here!" she cried in mock surprise, and Scorpius made a mental note to kill her in her sleep.

"Hi, guys," Albus said casually, coming to a halt beside them. "Are you coming down to watch?"

"Of course, we wouldn't miss it!" she nodded vigorously and the Slytherin gave her an odd look. He turned to Scorpius.

"Is it just me or does she seem especially weird today?"

Scorpius felt his face grow hot and he prayed to whatever god was listening that he didn't look like a tomato. "Erm... weird," he repeated stupidly, wishing that the ground would open up and swallow him. He cleared his throat. "Are you playing?" he asked, a split-second before he registered that Al was not holding a broom. The smaller boy smiled and gestured to the book in his hand.

"No, I'll just be in the stands. I tend to avoid flying at all costs," he replied as they began making their way down to the Quidditch pitch. "Everyone assumed that I'd be great, like my dad, but I'm awful. A menace, really. I find it better for all involved if I just keep my feet on the ground," Scorpius nodded, not trusting himself to say anything else. "What about you?"

"Oh, um..." he gestured to his own book and gave a nervous laugh. "Snap."

"So _you_ checked that out of the library! I've been trying to get it for weeks but Madam Pince wouldn't tell me who had it," Albus grinned. "She's so creepy; I only speak to her when it's completely unavoidable. My dad says she was here when _he_ was our age so Merlin knows how old she is now. She must be about a hundred and fifty!" he and Rose laughed loudly, but Scorpius feared he would snort or choke or do something similarly embarrassing, and so almost cracked a rib fighting the urge to join in.

"Are you alright, Scorp?" Rose turned to him. "Your face is bright red."

"I'm fine," he mumbled, feeling two sets of eyes on him.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Rose and Albus laughed and joked the whole way across the grounds with Scorpius trailing behind them, trying to think of excuses that he could make to allow him to leave. He had spent every day for as long as he could remember wishing that he could be close to Albus, talking and joking the way they were now but now that it was actually happening, he couldn't think of a time where he had been more terrified. Why did nobody warn him about this? His father had sat down with him when he was thirteen and spent half an hour giving him the most horrifically uncomfortable talk in the history of the world, filled with details about girls, and sex and things that he assured him were _perfectly natural _– he had used the word '_urges'_ for Melin's sake! It didn't get much creepier than that! – but nowhere in this speech had he mentioned this! The way that every time he met Albus' huge green eyes, his brain short-circuited and he lost the ability to speak. All coherent thought was lost every time their shoulders bumped together and he suddenly became very aware of his every movement. His legs seemed very heavy and his arms swung from side to side and oh god, he'd forgotten how to walk. Somehow, he managed to navigate himself across the pitch and into one of the stands. Up and up they climbed and he finally reached the top, hideously out of breath and acutely aware of the fact that Rose was watching his every move. Fighting the urge to push her back down the stairs, he took a seat and opened his book. To his mixed horror and delight, Albus slumped down next to him.

"You don't mind, do you?" he asked, his face deliciously flushed from climbing countless flights of stairs. Scorpius felt his mouth go very dry and he shook his head slowly. He turned his attention to his book and attempted to read but found it impossible to concentrate when the object of his many late-night fantasies was sitting so close that their shoulders were touching. He could hear the Slytherin's rhythmic breathing and he snuck a glance out of the corner of his eye. Albus was already engrossed in his reading, his green eyes flicking back and forth across the page at lightning speed. His shiny black hair fell across his face and he tucked it behind his ear absent-mindedly, where it promptly slid forward into his eyes again. He had a sprinkling of freckles across his nose, which was scrunched up in the most adorable fashion and Scorpius had to battle the urge to lunge forward and ravish him where he sat. Then, almost in slow motion, he saw something that almost caused him to melt on the spot: Albus' tongue darted out and he swept it across his bottom lip to moisten it. The entire action must have been over in less than a second but it was long enough to alert Scorpius to the fact that he had a boner, with nothing but his dusty old library book to disguise it.

_Fuck_, he thought, _fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck! _Did he make his excuses and leave - bearing in mind that today was Saturday and therefore there were no voluminous school robes to hide his problem - or did he simply sit and picture the least sexual things that he could think of until it went away? Deciding that it would be rude to leave so soon after they had arrived, coupled with the fact that his crotch would be at Al's eye-level if he stood up, he cast a glance around the school grounds in an attempt to find a distraction.

_Come on_, he thought desperately, willing his body to listen to him for once. He tapped his foot impatiently, noticing that Rose was watching him with a knowing look on her face.

"Are you alright, Scorp?" she grinned wickedly. "Are you finished with your book?"

"Pardon?" his voice seemed higher than usual and he cleared his throat loudly.

"You haven't turned the page in a while, I was just wondering if you had finished with it."

"Oh, erm..."

"Why don't you give it to Al if you're finished?" she asked sweetly, fighting to keep her face straight. His eyes widened.

"I don't think -"

"Go on, Scorp," she pressed. "Don't be rude."

Albus looked up at him expectantly and he shifted slightly in his seat. A few moments passed and he realised that he must have looked like a complete and utter twat, sitting gawking at Albus without saying a word.

"Sure, I'm finished anyway. Excuse me," he jumped up and hurried towards the stairs, taking them two at a time in his haste to put as much distance between himself and Albus as possible. He ran full-pelt towards the castle, barging past David Finnegan and Stephanie Abbot as they made their way down to the pitch, vaguely aware that they were calling after him, asking if he was alright. Images of Albus' smooth, tanned skin filled his mind and he willed himself to run faster. He was almost at the castle, just a few more minutes and he could put himself out of his misery. He skidded almost to a halt in the Entrance Hall and walked through the corridors as fast as was allowed without incurring the wrath of a prefect until he reached the Ravenclaw Common Room. Not speaking to anyone, he ran up the stairs and entered his dormitory, which, thankfully, was empty. He leaned against the door and closed his eyes, finally pausing to take a deep breath. Images of Albus flashed through his mind and he could still hear his even breathing, still smell his clean, citrusy scent and he could feel the Slytherin's warm weight against him as though he were still sitting beside him on the Quidditch pitch. He replayed the memory of Albus innocently licking his lips and Scorpius groaned, already fumbling with his belt. Pulling out his wand, he tapped the dormitory door, casting both locking and silencing charms before collapsing on his bed.

---

Feeling refreshed after a long shower (during which he'd knocked another two out, just in case he saw Albus again and lost all self-control), Scorpius made his way down to the Great Hall for lunch. As he approached the Ravenclaw table, he saw the back of Rose's bushy head and made a beeline for her, however, as he drew closer he saw that she was sitting beside her cousin. He tried his best to slip away unnoticed but Rose caught him in his attempt to escape.

"Scorpius, over here!"

He took a deep breath, resisting the urge to hex his best friend into oblivion, and turned to face her, plastering a smile onto his face. He could feel the colour rising in his cheeks already and his heart was thumping against his ribcage, as though Albus somehow _knew_ what he'd been doing all morning. He took a seat across from them and reached for the jug of pumpkin juice, trying to hide his trembling hands.

"Did you toss, then?" Al asked casually.

_CLANG_.

Pumpkin juice seeped from the upturned flagon, staining the tablecloth a vivid orange but all Scorpius could do was gape at the Slytherin. After a few moments had passed and it was apparent that the blond was no closer to cleaning up his mess, Rose pulled out her wand and Vanished the stain, observing her friend with a gleeful look in her eye. Scorpius cleared his throat.

"Pardon?"

"Did you toss up? Rose said that you were feeling sick," the raven-haired boy gave him a sympathetic look. The blond threw Rose a dirty look before returning his attention to Albus.

"No, but I feel much better after a couple of hours in my bed."

"I'll bet you do," Rose offered sweetly, reaching out to press a small, slender hand to his forehead. "Are you sure you're okay? You still look a little flushed."

"I'm fine!" he snapped, swatting her hand away. He could feel Albus' eyes on him and his face grew warm as he imagined the other boy licking his lips again. He lowered his gaze to his plate, avoiding the eyes of the two people in front of him.

"Are you sure? You _do_ look a little hot," Al commented and, before Scorpius could react, a different, much warmer hand was against his face. It was all he could do not pounce on the boy and he leapt to his feet, sending his fork clattering to the ground.

"Actually, I think you're right. I'm going to the Hospital Wing," he announced before almost sprinting from the Hall, leaving Rose and Albus to exchange baffled looks. He hurried along the corridor before pulling aside a tapestry and slipping into the alcove that it concealed. He let out a groan of frustration as he slid down the wall, landing with a thump on the cold stone floor. Why was he so pathetic? It had been five years, for Merlin's sake! He had expected things to get better as he grew older but his feelings just seemed to get deeper and more intense as the years passed. At first he had been captivated by the Slytherin's innocent face and easy charm. A couple of years passed and he became more aware of his feelings and what they meant. He would catch himself wishing that he could run his hands through his soft, ebony locks and fantasizing about kissing the young Potter. He had asked his father if it was normal to feel these things and was relieved to hear that yes, it was indeed normal, but could he please find someone other than a Potter to fantasize about? He couldn't tell if his father was joking and so did not press the issue. Instead of getting better as he'd hoped it would, it got immeasurably worse as time wore on. Now, he couldn't even hear Albus' voice without wanting to rip the boy's clothes off. It was all that he could think about! Not exactly a good thing when trying to study for one's OWLs. He sighed and raised a hand to push his hair out of his face, startled to find that his cheeks were wet. He hadn't even realised that he was crying.

---

_**A/N: **__How was it? Let me know! Cookies to all who review! x_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Summary:**____Scorpius Malfoy has been absolutely, undeniably and irrevocably in love with Albus Potter since he was eleven years old. He is perfectly happy to watch from the sidelines but his best friend, one Rose Weasley, has decided that she's had enough. Cue anonymous owls, a stolen bottle of Firewhisky, a double detention and a party in the Slytherin dungeon. This plan is 100% foolproof. Possibly._

_**Rating:**__ M_

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own any of the characters or settings that you recognise; they belong to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. I am not making any money from this story._

_**A/N:**____Just a short update this time but I promise that you won't have to wait too long for the next instalment :) x_

---

Scorpius glowered at Rose over the top of his textbook as he watched her explaining Astronomy to Albus. For the past three weeks, she had used any excuse to have her cousin join them, be it at dinner, in the library, in the Common Room – anywhere she could think of, really. At first, he had assumed that she would get bored when Al showed no interest but, _au contraire_, she had grown more and more determined as the weeks had passed. She glanced up at him, smirking, and he glared at her with renewed vigour, starting a little when Al spoke.

"Shit, I must have forgotten my lunar chart," he said, his voice muffled from inside his bag. He stopped rummaging around and his head reappeared. "I have to go down to the dungeons for it. Rose, do you fancy coming with me? I'll get a bollocking if a prefect catches me wandering the corridors at this time and you always seem to get away with stuff."

"I can't, Al, I really need to get this finished," Rose had an evil glint in her eye. "But Scorpius doesn't have much more to do. He could go with you."

Scorpius' fingers itched to grab either his wand or Rose's throat – which, he wasn't sure - but he settled for forcing a smile, which he suspected came across as more constipated than contrite. "No, I'm sure Al doesn't -"

"Okay, that'd be brilliant," Albus cut across him, getting to his feet. "Can you watch our stuff for a bit, Rosie?"

"Of course," she smiled sweetly. "Take your time."

"Thanks," Al replied, giving her an odd look. He turned to Scorpius. "Ready? We'll only be away for ten minutes but I'm terrible at thinking on my feet so I usually end up with a detention when I get caught out after curfew."

Scorpius stood up and the pair made their way towards the door, quickly falling into step. "I thought all Slytherins were sneaky, devious and excellent liars. Or have I just been spending too much time with your Uncle Ron?"

Albus laughed. "Yeah, I tend to avoid him after eight o'clock on Christmas Day. He has one Firewhiskey too many and I end up hanging from the ceiling by my ankle with my face painted red and gold."

"Oh yes, I remember that year. Your mum and dad couldn't help you down for laughing at you," Scorpius said, and Al's laughter quickly died.

"You saw that?"

"Yes, Rosie and I were in the kitchen stealing another piece of cake while your gran wasn't looking. Why?"

"No reason," the Slytherin replied quickly, his cheeks pink. "I just didn't realise that you were there. I assumed you and Rose were otherwise occupied that night. That's why I didn't bother looking for you."

Scorpius stopped in his tracks. "Pardon?"

"You and Rose," Albus repeated. "Don't worry, everyone in the family knows and they're fine with it."

"Knows about what?" Scorpius narrowed his eyes dangerously. "What about Rose and I?"

"That she's your girlfriend," Al said slowly. "You don't need to act so coy, Scorp."

"My WHAT?" Scorpius exclaimed. "Who said that? Did _she_ tell you that?"

"Well, no but you're always hanging around together so we just assumed…" he trailed off when he caught sight of Scorpius' face.

"Rest assured, Rose is most certainly not my girlfriend," Scorpius said forcefully.

"Really?" Al looked surprised. "But you two go so well together. Have you ever thought about asking her out?"

Scorpius gave a disbelieving laugh. Surely nobody could be _that_ dense. "Where have you been for the last three years? Living under a rock?"

"What do you mean?"

The blond sighed. Apparently Al really was _that_ dense. "No, I have never thought about asking Rose out. Or any other girl, for that matter."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Most of the girls in here are really stuck-up, don't you think?"

"For the love of Merlin, Al, read between the lines! I've never wanted to ask out any girls… ever."

A look of dawning comprehension appeared on Albus' face and his cheeks coloured as the final piece fell into place. "Oh. _Oh!_ Oh, right. I heard those rumors but I didn't think they were true. I mean, I thought that you and Rose were – so, I just – I didn't -"

"It's okay, I'm just surprised that there was someone out there who didn't know I was gay."

"Do a lot of people know?" Al looked at him curiously.

Scorpius arched an eyebrow. "My mother guessed that I was gay when I was twelve. Even I didn't know then! I came out a couple of years ago and that was when she told me."

"How did they react?"

"They were really amazing. My dad was upset when I refused to marry a witch but I think he understands."

"How did you tell them? Were you scared? Did you practice what you were going to say in the mirror first?" Al pressed on, his eyes wide.

"Why are you so interested?" Scorpius frowned. He regarded the brunet for a moment, taking in his nervous expression and flushed cheeks. He was shifting from foot to foot and picking at the hem of his sleeve, desperately trying to avoid making eye-contact. "Al, are you -"

"Look what I found!" a loud voice interrupted him and Scorpius looked up to see James Potter walking towards them, a smug grin on his face. "Why are you wandering about the castle at -" he glanced at his watch. "- half-past nine at night? If I'm not mistaken, that's past your curfew."

"We were just on our way back to the Common Room," Albus retorted.

"Why were you both heading towards the dungeons then? He's a Ravenclaw," James pointed to Scorpius. Neither of the younger boys could find any way to dispute that fact and so maintained a stony silence. James' grin broadened. "Ten points from both of your Houses and detention with Neville tomorrow night. He was just telling me this afternoon that his prized collection of _mimbulus mimbletonia_ exploded in greenhouse five and that he needed someone to help scrape the stinksap off of the walls," he smirked. "Have a good night, boys."

Scorpius stared at James' retreating back with a look of mingled fury and horror on his face. Detention? Scorpius had never been given a detention in his life! What was he supposed to tell his father? How does one explain a permanent black mark on an otherwise perfect academic record? He could feel the first onset of panic when a noise from his left side brought him back to reality with a jolt, and he turned to see Al looking as though he would very much like to punch his brother in the face.

"He is such a wanker," the brunet spat, balling his fists.

"He's the Head Boy," Scorpius reminded him. "We are out after curfew – he had to give us a detention."

"No, he didn't!" Al snapped. "He could have just given us a warning but he had to be a dick about it."

Scorpius, seeing that Al was not going to respond to reason, bid the irate Slytherin goodnight and made his way back up to the Ravenclaw Common Room, deciding against returning to the library and simply hoping that Rose would return, preferably with his bag, shortly.

---

"Thanks for that, Jamie, you're quite an actor," Rose said approvingly, handing her cousin five galleons.

"Why, thank you," James gave a low bow. "But you can keep your money."

"Are you sure?"

"Believe me, giving Al a detention is worth more to me than a few galleons, Rosie," he grinned. "How did you know that they would be down here after curfew anyway?"

Rose reached into her bag and pulled out a crumpled lunar chart. "I took this when Al wasn't looking. I knew that he would need it to finish his essay, all I had to do was make sure that he didn't notice that it was gone until after nine o'clock."

James chuckled appreciatively. "A homework-based plot? Aunt Hermione would be proud."

"It's all fine and well being pleased about giving them a detention but we mustn't get too complacent. There is still a long way to go and I don't want to seem too pushy."

"You don't want to be too pushy?" James raised an eyebrow. "You're trying to force two people together; you're going to have to be a bit pushy."

"I'm not forcing anything! Scorpius has been in love with Al since we started school and Al is just too dense to realise that he likes him back. I'm simply trying to help fate along," Rose replied carefully.

"But surely if they are meant to be, something would have happened by now? How do you know that Al is even into guys?"

"Because he admitted it to me one night a few weeks ago, in the summer holidays, but he asked me not to tell anyone."

"So you're exploiting his trust in you as soon as his back is turned?"

"Yep."

There was a pause. "Well, Rosie, I like your style," he shook her hand briefly. "Count me in."

---

_**A/N: **__Ooh, progress! Let me know what you think so far x_


	3. Chapter 3

Summary: Scorpius Malfoy has been absolutely, undeniably and irrevocably in love with Albus Potter since he was eleven years old. He is perfectly happy to watch from the sidelines but his best friend, one Rose Weasley, has decided that she's had enough. Cue anonymous owls, a stolen bottle of Firewhisky, a double detention and a party in the Slytherin dungeon. This plan is 100% foolproof. Possibly.

_**Rating:**__ M_

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own any of the characters or settings that you recognise; they belong to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. I am not making any money from this story._

_**A/N:**____Sorry for the HUGE delay in updating. I wish I could provide some sort of excuse for my lengthy absence but, quite frankly, I'm very lazy. I had a bit of a brain fart (i.e. writers block) for the past few of months and have been feeling slightly despondent about my writing but things seem to be improving so hopefully I can get some more updates to you soon :) xox_

"Alright, everybody, good work today. I want a twelve-inch update on the progress of your plants next time I see you and I expect everyone to use at least one periods to check up on them, okay?" Professor Longbottom called over the racket his NEWT students were making. "And mister Malfoy, a word please?"

Scorpius sighed as he watched his classmates exit the greenhouse, all chattering excitedly; he slung his bag over his shoulder and made his way over to where the professor was standing at the front of the room. "Yes, sir?"

"I trust that you've not forgotten about your detention tonight, Scorpius?"

"No, sir," Scorpius dropped his gaze.

"Good lad. I'll see you down here at eight o'clock sharp then, yes?"

Scorpius nodded and Neville patted him on the shoulder before ushering him out of the greenhouse and into the bleak, rainy Hogwarts grounds. He found Rose lurking in the vegetable patch; she almost jumped out of her skin when he tapped her on the shoulder.

"What's the matter with you?" he asked when she had recovered enough to speak.

"Nothing, I just didn't hear you sneaking up on me," she replied quickly, taking his arm and leading him towards the castle."

"I was hardly sneaking, Rose," he gave her an odd look. "Why were you standing there in the rain anyway?"

"I was waiting for you, of course," she replied.

"But you don't take Herbology and the greenhouses are completely out of your way. What were you really doing?" he surveyed her shrewdly but she ignored him.

"Do you know what you're going to tell your dad yet? About the detention, I mean."

The blond shook his head. "No, not yet. I'm hoping that I'll never have to tell him, but that doesn't seem likely, does it?"

"Your dad is like a sniffer dog when it comes to things like this and you would crumble under questioning."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Rosie," Scorpius glared at her. "Now I feel much better."

"Well, you should be feeling pretty good just now anyway," she gave him a knowing look. "You have your detention with Al tonight."

There was a long pause. Scorpius threw his arm out to halt Rose before turning slowly to face her. "What did you do?"

"What are you talking about?" she asked breezily. "I had nothing to do with this."

"Don't lie to me, Rosie, this positively reeks of you," the blond narrowed his eyes. "You know something and I want to know what it is."

"I don't know anything! You got yourself a detention with no help from me!"

"Rose…" he lowered his voice dangerously. "If you've messed up my perfect record to further some inane plot to get Albus and I together -"

"Okay, okay. Yes, I spoke to James and _perhaps_ I asked him to find you out of bounds after curfew. And, okay, maybe some money changed hands but, really, you should be thanking -"

"I should _what_? _Thank_ you? For getting me in deep shit with my dad, putting a permanent black mark on my record and possibly fucking up my chances at getting an internship at St. Mungos? Oh _thank you_, Rose, however can I repay you?" he snarled, wrenching his arm out of her grip.

"I think you're being a bit melodramatic, Scorp - St. Mungos aren't going to care if you got one measly little detention," she snorted.

"Oh, you know just as well as I do that they are looking for the best of the best, and that sort of attitude won't cut it when it comes to picking interns! Just let it go, okay? This stupid obsession has gone far enough. I appreciate your interest but Al is straight."

"No he's not!" she shouted after him as he began to stomp away. He stopped dead but didn't turn around.

"That's not funny, Rose," he said quietly. "That's not funny in the slightest."

"I wouldn't joke about something like that!"

Scorpius didn't trust himself to speak and so continued walking towards the castle. He wiped his eyes furiously, thankful, for once, that it was raining.

That afternoon, Scorpius sat cross-legged on his bed, writing and re-writing a letter to his father. After discarding his fifth attempt, he realised that no amount of big words and fancy handwriting was going to distract Draco Malfoy from the fact that his son had a detention for the first time in his life, or the fact that he had been given aforementioned detention by a Potter. Selecting a fresh roll of parchment, Scorpius dipped his quill into his inkpot and wrote a brief but sincere letter:

_Father,_

_Please forgive me if I forgo the usual pleasantries but I see little point in beating around the bush, as they say. I am sorry to inform you that I have been given my first detention, a fact that will no doubt be documented on my academic record for the foreseeable future. It gives me no pleasure to write this letter and I am willing to accept whatever punishment you deem suitable._

_Scorpius_

Scorpius rolled the letter into a tight scroll and tied it to the leg of his eagle owl, watching with a sense of impending doom as it soared majestically out of the open window and into the inky sky beyond.

"You're early," Professor Longbottom remarked when Scorpius entered greenhouse five at ten to eight that evening.

"Yes, sir. I've never had a detention before and wanted to make a good impression," Scorpius replied.

"Yes, I must admit that I was rather surprised when James told me who would be serving detention with his brother. I've come to expect this of Al but I'm a little bit disappointed in you, Scorpius. I hope tonight teaches you a lesson."

"It will, professor, I promise."

"Good, I'm glad to hear it. Now, Al should be here soon so I'd like you to fill two buckets with warm, soapy water and make a start on cleaning up the back wall. There was a slight mishap with my _mimbulus mimbletonia _collection and, well, let's just say that it will keep you busy for a few hours," Professor Longbottom laughed.

"Couldn't you just clean it up with magic?" Scorpius looked confused.

"Of course I could, but where is the lesson in that for you? Have a good night, Scorpius, and please report to me in greenhouse two when you're finished."

Scorpius watched as the round-faced professor disappeared through the greenhouse door and he turned his gaze towards the back wall, which was positively dripping with foul-smelling slime. "Brilliant. Just bloody brilliant," he muttered to himself as he summoned a plastic bucket from the front of the room and filled it with water from his wand.

"Talking to yourself?" came Al's voice from behind him and Scorpius almost upended the basin of water he was carrying in surprise.

"Not talking, grumbling," the blond replied. He picked up a dry sponge and threw it at the Slytherin, who caught it easily. "Take that. We have to clean that entire wall without magic so we'd better get started."

"Merlin, that is disgusting," Al held his nose as he leaned in to inspect the sludge. "There is no way I'm touching that."

"We have to, that's our punishment," Scorpius said matter-of-factly.

"Or we could just use magic?" Al suggested hopefully.

"And then what? I'm sure Professor Longbottom wouldn't be suspicious if we told him that we were finished ten minutes after we arrived," Scorpius replied sarcastically.

Al rolled his eyes. "I didn't say we had to leave after ten minutes, you dolt. He expects us to be in here for hours."

"So, we would just sit here twiddling our thumbs for three hours? As thrilling as that sounds, I think I'd rather just clean this. At least then we'd be busy."

Scorpius turned his attention to the mess in front of him and began scrubbing the wall with as much force as he could muster. He wrinkled his nose; _Mimbulus mimbletonia_ slime was hard to shift.

"Boring," Al sighed, dunking his sponge into the bucket with a little too much force, causing soapy water to slosh up and over the side, splattering all over the floor and Scorpius' shoes. He grinned. "Oops." Scorpius stood stock-still, his mouth forming a silent "o"shape. Al's smile faded slightly. "Are you okay? I'm sorry, it was an accident!"

"Of course, I – I just - my dad just sent me these shoes from Italy last week," Scorpius said in a small voice, painfully aware of how spoiled he sounded. Far from looking apologetic, the corners of Al's mouth twitched upwards and his shoulders began to shake with suppressed laughter. "It's not funny!" Scorpius protested. "They were really expensive!" But the more he objected, the harder Albus laughed, leaving the blond with no option – he leaned over and wrung out his dirty sponge over Al's shiny black hair. The laughter ceased at once.

"What was that for?"

"I'm sorry, it was an accident," Scorpius replied scathingly.

"You've got slime in my hair!" a red flush was creeping across Al's nose and cheeks. "I didn't mean to get water on your bloody shoes!"

"You shouldn't have laughed at me," the Ravenclaw replied, sticking his nose in the air and turning back to the slimy wall. A second later, he found himself thoroughly drenched as Al picked up the bucket and promptly emptied its contents over Scorpius' head. Spluttering and shivering like a cat in the rain, Scorpius slowly turned to face the Slytherin, who was grinning from ear to ear, bucket still in hand.

"Was that really necessary?" he asked in a would-be calm voice.

"Yes," Al replied smugly.

"Okay then," Scorpius bent down to pick up his own bucket. Al had hardly taken one step back when the soapy water hit him square in the face, sloshing down the front of his robes and soaking him from head to foot. Al pushed his sopping hair out of his eyes, blinking rapidly, and took a few steps back.

"I suppose I asked for that," he coughed. "How about a truce?"

Scorpius lowered the now-empty bucket slowly. "Promise?"

"Of course I promise, what do you take me for?"

"Well, I suppose -" Scorpius' reply was cut short by Al's sopping wet sponge smacking him square in the face; he opened his eyes to see Albus doubled up laughing. "What the hell? I thought you suggested we call a truce?"

Al opened his mouth to reply when the greenhouse door slid open to reveal Professor Longbottom.

"I thought I heard loud noises coming from in here. Is everything -" he trailed off as he took in the absurd scene before him. He sighed. "What was I thinking, leaving a Potter and a Malfoy alone in the same room? Alright gentlemen, if you could follow me to greenhouse two, I think lines may be more appropriate."

The boys watched as the round-faced professor vanished the mess with a flick of his wand before trailing across the vegetable patches and taking seats at opposite ends of greenhouse two. Neville pulled out two pieces of parchment and two quills, placed one of each on the desk before them and waved his wand across the chalkboard at the front of the room; the words _I must learn to act my age_ appeared instantly. Al snorted.

"How many times do you want us to write it?"

"I don't know," Professor Longbottom shrugged. "Three hundred?"

"Three hundred?" Al cried.

"Did I say three? I meant five."

Scorpius sighed; this was going to be a long night.

The next morning at breakfast, Scorpius could barely keep his eyes open; he and Albus had been up until after one o'clock that morning writing lines for Professor Longbottom. Grimacing as he gripped his spoon tighter, Scorpius gave up on trying to eat his porridge and, instead, used his book bag as a makeshift pillow, with the intention of resting his eyes for the remaining fifteen minutes before his first lesson.

"Why aren't you eating?" Rose asked, prodding him none too gently in the ribs.

"My hand is cramping," came his muffled reply. "I can't hold the spoon."

"What on earth did you get up to last night?"

"Lines!" he snapped. "I had to write lines for four and a half hours because Professor Longbottom decided that Al and I couldn't be trusted by ourselves."

"Oh yeah?" Rose raised an eyebrow.

"Get your mind out of the gutter," Scorpius rolled his eyes. "We were meant to be cleaning the greenhouse the Muggle way but Al soaked my shoes."

"Well, I imagine that went down like a lead balloon," she smirked.

"Indeed," he gave a wry smile. "So I wrung my sponge out over his head, but he tips the whole bucket onto me! Then I throw my bucket over him, and that's when Professor Longbottom came in."

Rose sighed. "Very mature of you, Scorpius."

"Oh yes, I'm sure my father will be thrilled when he hears that I was given another detention for destroying the greenhouse that I was serving my_ first_ detention in!"

"Oh no!" Rose grimaced. "Well, I don't envy you at all. Have you heard back from him yet?"

"No, but Professor Longbottom says that he is going to owl both my father and the Potters today so I won't be surprised if I get a Howler containing a week's worth of pent-up rage at some point in the next few days," Scorpius said gloomily. He sighed and got to his feet. "I'm going to Transfiguration early. I'll see you at lunch – if my father doesn't have me killed before then, that is."

_**A/N:**_ _So… what did you think? I know this update is quite short but the next one should be up in the next few days x_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Summary:**_ Scorpius Malfoy has been absolutely, undeniably and irrevocably in love with Albus Potter since he was eleven years old. He is perfectly happy to watch from the sidelines but his best friend, one Rose Weasley, has decided that she's had enough. Cue anonymous owls, a stolen bottle of Firewhisky, a double detention and a party in the Slytherin dungeon. This plan is 100% foolproof. Possibly.

_**Rating:**__ M_

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own any of the characters or settings that you recognise; they belong to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. I am not making any money from this story._

_**A/N:**_

Almost a month after writing to his father with the news of his detention, Scorpius was still waiting for a reply. Most people would take this as a good sign and breathe a sigh of relief but Scorpius was wiser than this; he knew better than to take his father's silence to mean that he was getting away unscathed. No, it was far more likely that Draco was planning to unleash his tirade face-to-face when he returned to Malfoy Manor at Christmas.

"Scorpius!"

The blond spun round at the sound of his name to see Albus hurrying towards him.

"Hi, Al," he smiled, butterflies dancing in his stomach as the other boy approached. "How are things?"

"Not bad," Al replied. "I've been looking for you all morning."

"Really?" Scorpius' heart leapt.

"Erm, yeah," a blush crept across the Slytherin's nose and cheeks. "I – I have something for you."

"Oh?"

"It should be in here somewhere," Al wrenched open his book bag and began rummaging around inside it. "Here is it! Oh, sorry - it's a bit squashed."

Scorpius took the crumpled piece of parchment and scanned it; it was an invitation.

"You're having a party?"

"Sort of. It's an invitation to the Slytherin Christmas party," Al explained.

"Oh, I see," Scorpius frowned. "But I'm not in Slytherin."

"I know, but everyone is allowed to bring a date. Or a friend," he added hastily, flushing magenta. "Are you up for it?"

"I don't see why not. Where is it?"

"The Slytherin dungeon. Just bring the invitation and they'll let you in, no questions," said Al.

Scorpius checked the date. "Christmas Eve?"

"Yeah, is that okay?" Al cocked his head.

"Are you staying here for the holidays?"

"My mum and dad are taking James and Lily to Romania to spend Christmas with my Uncle Charlie," Al replied. "I'd rather stay here so I told them to go without me. What about you?"

"Well..." Scorpius paused. "I usually go home for the holidays but I suppose I could stay this year."

"You don't have to change your plans for me!" Al said hurriedly. "I wouldn't want you to feel obliged. I just thought I'd see if you and Rose were free."

"Rose is spending Christmas at the Burrow," Scorpius said slowly. "So it would just be me. Is that okay?"

Al nodded eagerly. "That's fine! If you can stand the thought of my company for a whole night, that is," he added, grinning.

Scorpius fought the urge to do a quick victory dance. "I'm sure I'll manage."

On the last day of term, Scorpius was a mess. He was aware of Rose talking animatedly in his ear throughout their final class of the day, History of Magic, but he couldn't for the life of him concentrate on the individual words.

"So, then Alice said to him, '_if I find out that you've been doing more than Potions revision with her, I'll hex your balls off!_' and he went red, I mean _bright_ red, and then – Scorp? Scorpius, are you even listening to me?"

"No," he said flatly. "I've not heard a word you've said in the past hour and a half, Rose."

"Well, that's a bit of a kick in the nuts, Scorp. You could ramble on for hours about the uses of dragon blood and I have always made an effort to listen! I think Alice and Richard's argument is _bit_ more interesting than the uses of dragon blood, to be honest, so you could at least make an effort to pay more attention."

"Rosie, I am very interested in the inner workings of our friends' relationships, you should never question my love of gossip, but at this very moment in time I am slightly more preoccupied with a certain party invitation from a certain Slytherin!" Scorpius hissed.

"Ohhh," Rose nodded slowly. "I see! You're worried about making an arse of yourself in front of my cousin."

"Among other things, yes."

"Why are you worrying? You've made an arse out of yourself in front of him loads of times."

"Thank you, Rose, that's very comforting right now," he said dully.

"You have! And it obviously hasn't put him off that much or he wouldn't have invited you to this party, which, by the way, I am incredibly jealous about. Stupid mum and dad making me going to my stupid gran's house," she grumbled. Scorpius ignored her.

"What if he invited me out of pity?" the blond turned to face his friend, panicking.

"Scorpius, didn't you tell me that he had no idea that you weren't planning on staying for the holidays?" she asked, looking exasperated.

"Yes," he answered slowly.

"And did he or did he not blush when he accidentally referred to you as his date?"

"I can't really remember now, I might have just -"

"AND," she cut across him loudly, earning her glares from the students in front. "Did he not offer to keep you company all night?"

"Well, he did but only in a -"

"Scorpius! For Merlin's sake, would you please just calm down? You're getting yourself into a state about nothing," she soothed. "Albus is a good guy and he likes you, now please just stopped twittering like a little bird about all the things that could go wrong and tell me what you're going to wear."

The next morning, Scorpius was sitting alone at the Slytherin table, most his house-mates having gone home the previous evening. He cast an eye around the rest of the hall and counted a total of thirty people dotted around the various tables, most of them older students with revision notes and long essays already in front of them. He was staring glumly into his bowl of corn flakes when a screech from overhead signalled the arrival of the post owls. Correction: post owl, singular. A second later, a tightly-furled scroll landed in his soggy cereal, splashing milk on the table. Another quickly followed, landing neatly at the side of his goblet of pumpkin juice. Sighing, he picked the first one out of his bowl and shook it off gingerly, flattening it out on the table.

_Scorpius,_

_Do not think that your avoidance of me during the holidays will cause me to have amnesia regarding your little stint in detention with the Potter brat. Your punishment has already been decided and will be waiting for you when you return home at Easter. There will be no discussion on the matter. I would also like to make it clear that there will be absolutely no further __fraternising__ with any Potters, Weasleys, or any other hideous hybrids those people have spawned, is that understood? I feel that I have been incredibly lenient towards you and your dalliances with these people in the past but I will not stand for them bringing you down to their uncouth level._

_Have an enjoyable Christmas._

_Your father,_

_Draco Malfoy_

Scorpius was shaking by the time he had finished scanning his father's letter. He was no longer terrified of his father the way he had been as child but to directly disobey him was still not something one did lightly. Taking a deep breath, he pushed the parchment to one side and opened up the second.

_My darling Scorpius,_

_Take no notice of whatever drivel your father is currently writing, tucked away in the cave that he calls an office; I was cast out of said cave the moment I enquired as to what he was doing, so one can only assume it is pseudo-threatening drivel designed to make you terrified to think for yourself. He has had a broom up his arse ever since Harry Potter was granted funding for his department that the Minister had allegedly promised Draco's research team - how much truth is reflected in your father's rants about Potter, no-one will ever know. On a less tedious note, a little bird tells me that you have been invited to party with Rose's cousin; I am very happy that you're making new friends, my love._

_Have a wonderful Christmas._

_Your loving mother,_

_Astoria Malfoy_

Scorpius smiled as he read his mother's comforting words; Astoria Malfoy really was the perfect match for his father – warm, patient, caring and, most importantly, unafraid to snap back when Draco took a hissy-fit. His worries eased slightly, he Summoned the coffee from the centre of the long table and poured himself a generous mug, a small smile still gracing his pale face.

"Room for one more?"

Scorpius looked up so quickly he was sure a trip to the hospital wing would be in order; medi-witches would be able to realign spines, surely? He set his mug down in front of him. "Albus, hi."

"Do you mind if I sit with you? My housemates are all lazy arses," he smiled easily, taking a seat across from the blond as he nodded dumbly. "They wouldn't get out of bed before twelve on a holiday unless there's a fire in the dormitory. And even then it'd be fifty-fifty."

Scorpius laughed. "What a waste of a day!"

"I agree. I'd only stay in bed all day if I had someone in there with me," Al grinned.

"Oh, I – I wouldn't know," he stammered. "I've never had the pleasure of having someone to invite into my bed. No, not _pleasure_! Merlin, what terrible word choice, I sound like my father," he flushed crimson. "I – I just meant -"

Albus was laughing loudly at his obvious discomfort. "I know what you meant, Scorp!"

Scorpius cleared his throat, his face still pink. "Good."

Al shifted awkwardly in his seat. "Me neither."

"I'm sorry?" Scorpius looked up from his coffee cup.

"I've never had the… erm… what you just said. I've never had anyone in my bed, either."

Scorpius took in the Slytherin's avoidance of eye contact and brightly flushed cheeks, frowning. "But, I thought -"

"Everyone thinks the same. They assume that I'm like James, all cool and easy-going and charming, but I'm not. I'm really awkward. My dad is too, but no-one really knows that; most people just see him as the Boy Who Lived or some high-flying Ministry official who gives brilliant speeches and press conferences but he's actually really shy and awkward, like me," Scorpius detected a hint of pride in the boy's voice. "He hates speaking in front of people."

"I had no idea. The way my father speaks of him…" the blond trailed off, not wanting to offend.

"Yeah, my dad says that your dad always accused him of being attention-seeking and thought he was trying to hog the limelight," Al grinned. "They really hated each other."

"My father thinks that my associating with you will be my downfall," Scorpius said nervously, a small smile on his lips.

Albus looked at him seriously. "And what do you think?"

Scorpius met his eye, blushing. "I think he's right."

The raven-haired boy chuckled. "You're the strangest person I have ever met, Scorpius Malfoy. You're so different from anyone else I know."

"I'm not sure that that's a compliment," Scorpius frowned.

Al laughed again. "Trust me, it is."

_**A/N: **__Okay, it has taken me far too long but I finally have an update for you! I'm sorry that it's so short but I had to cut it off there as the next chapter is the Christmas party – exciting stuff! Thank you for your patience, love to everyone who had stuck by me in my terrible writers block xo_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Summary:**_ Scorpius Malfoy has been absolutely, undeniably and irrevocably in love with Albus Potter since he was eleven years old. He is perfectly happy to watch from the sidelines but his best friend, one Rose Weasley, has decided that she's had enough. Cue anonymous owls, a stolen bottle of Firewhiskey, a double detention and a party in the Slytherin dungeon. This plan is 100% foolproof. Possibly.

_**Rating:**__ M_

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own any of the characters or settings that you recognise; they belong to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. I am not making any money from this story._

_**A/N:**____Chapter five – finally! xo_

-x-

Following the successful conversation at breakfast, Scorpius felt that the longer he spent in Albus' company, the higher the risk of making a complete fool of himself was and so when the Slytherin announced that he was making a quick trip to the loo, Scorpius pounced on the chance to run away.

"Alright, no problem," Al said, his green eyes wide. "You're still coming to the Christmas party tonight though, aren't you?"

"Of – of course," the blond stuttered. "If I'm still invited, that is."

"Of course you are," he smiled shyly. "I'm looking forward to it."

"So am I," Scorpius found that he was staring at the other boy and he forced himself to blink. He cleared his throat. "Anyway, I've got a Charms essay that I'd like to get out of the way early so I'll be heading up now, but I'll see you tonight?"

Al nodded. "Yeah, just come to the dungeon around nine o'clock and someone will let you in."

"Nine o'clock," Scorpius repeated. Al grinned.

"Wicked. See you tonight, Scorp."

"Bye, Albus," he said softly, watching the dark-haired boy's retreating back, his heart racing a mile a minute. Had Albus really said that he was looking forward to seeing him? Surely not. He had obviously meant that he was looking forward to the party. Yes, that was what he had meant – why in Merlin's name would he be looking forward to seeing Scorpius? He was boring, _and_ weird – Al had said so himself not twenty minutes ago! Okay, he had insisted that he meant it as a good thing but Scorpius failed to see how being called strange was a compliment. The panic building up inside of him was threatening to bubble over and he looked around wildly; there was no-one here that could help him, he needed to talk to Rose as a matter of urgency. Throwing himself through the corridors and up the tightly winding staircase to the Ravenclaw Common Room, he grasped the eagle-shaped doorknocker and thrust it down with a resonating _clang_.

"Is there life after death?"came the sing-song voice of the brass bird.

"I don't have time for this, I have to talk to Rose!" he whined but the door remained unmoving. He sighed. "I cannot answer your question."

"How so?"

"Your question in itself is intrinsically flawed, as it assumes our consciousness in this reality as fact. One can be sure of nothing, therefore one can never have a definitive answer."

There was a pause. "Well reasoned," said the eagle, and the door swung open.

Scorpius shoved past it and into the Common Room, scurrying across the star-strewn carpet towards the marble fireplace, where he knelt before the hearth and Summoned his pot of Floo powder, smuggled from his father's study in Malfoy Manor, from the sixth-year dormitory. It zoomed towards him and he caught it unsteadily, grasping a handful and throwing it into his hastily cast _Incendio_; he waited until the flames roared and turned emerald green – _the colour of Albus' eyes_, he thought with a flutter in the region of his navel – before sticking his head in the fireplace and shouting, "the Burrow!"

He waited for the uncomfortable spinning sensation to stop before opening his eyes, finding an unfazed room full of redheads glancing in his direction.

"Good morning, Scorpius!" cried Rose's grandmother. "What can we do for you?"

"Hi, Mrs Weasley," he smiled. "Morning, everyone. Is Rose awake yet?"

"Hello, Scorpius," Rose's mother came into view, holding a steaming cup of tea. "I'm afraid the lazy mare is still in bed upstairs. Would you like to come through and wake her up? I'm sure she'll be pleased to see you."

"Erm... okay, thank you," he replied, "I'll be through in a moment."

He stood up quickly, casting more glittering powder into the flames and stepping into the grate. The fireplaces spun in front of him at a sickening speed and he pulled his elbows in tighter to his sides lest he injure himself as one passed close by him. Slowly everything came back into focus and he stepped gracefully into the living room of the Burrow, a rumble of voices greeting him as he dusted himself off.

"Just go up, Scorpius, she's in her room," Rose's mother gestured towards the stairs.

"Wait a minute!" Rose's father lowered the paper so quickly, Scorpius was surprised he didn't tear it. "I'm not having a sixteen year old boy prowling my daughter's bedroom!"

"Ron -" the bushy-haired woman placed a hand on her husband's shoulder.

"No, he can insist that they're _just good friends_ until he's blue in the face but I'm still not letting him have free reign over my first-born in her nightwear," the redhead cut across her. "We were just friends when we were their age and I know the type of thoughts that were running through my head. All boys should be locked up at thirteen and not allowed to roam among decent people until they're twenty-nine."

"Ron," his wife said, more firmly this time.

"Mr Weasley, I'm gay," Scorpius said, laughing. "No offence to either of you, I love your daughter dearly and she is a beautiful girl but the thought of seeing Rose in her undercrackers isn't the stuff of dreams for me."

Mrs Granger-Weasley snorted into her tea as her husband's jaw dropped.

"Well," he cleared his throat awkwardly, opening his copy of the _Prophet_ once more. "Well... alright then, Scorpius, you can go up."

The Ravenclaw smothered a grin as he watched Mr Weasleys ears turn red behind the newspaper before leaving the room and climbing up the many stairs to the guest room that his best friend used during her frequent stays.

"Rose?" he pushed the door open slowly, peeking his head around it as he did.

"Go away," she groaned, pulling the duvet over her head.

"Rosie, it's me," he closed the door and padded over to the bed.

"Scorp?" she wrenched the covers down and sat up, looking confused. "What's happened? Why are you at my gran's house?"

"Albus said that he was looking forward to tonight," he blurted. "Does that mean he's looking forward to the party or that he's looking forward to seeing me?"

Rose sighed and pulled Scorpius under the covers with her; it was a mark of how nervous he was that he didn't fuss, even when she lay him down firmly and flattened his hair on the pillow. "Right, how exactly did he say it?"

"What do you mean?" Scorpius looked puzzled.

"I mean, what context was it in? Did he just say it in passing or did you talk before he said it?"

The blond thought back to the final moments of their conversation in the Great Hall. "We sat together at breakfast and I asked if he still wanted me to go to the party and he said yes, and that he was looking forward to it."

Rose's face split in a wide grin. "Scorpius, this is a brilliant development! Do you know what this means?"

Scorpius looked wary. "What does it mean?"

"It means that you have to look _amazing_ tonight."

"I always look amazing!" he said indignantly. "Not all of us are happy to sit in the library in Muggle tracksuit bottoms, Rose."

"Whatever," she ignored him. "We have to get to work immediately!"

"What do you have in mind?" he asked nervously. "Because I already -"

Scorpius was cut off by the door banging open to reveal Rose's father, looking like he would like nothing more than to string the young Ravenclaw up. "Ah-ha!" he said triumphantly, as his wife appeared at his side.

"Ron!" she admonished, grabbing his arm. "What in Merlin's name are you doing?"

"I knew it!" he pointed at the teenagers, who were currently buried under a pile of pink and white blankets. "You were happy enough to accept his _trust me,_ _I'm gay_ speech but I knew we shouldn't let him up here!"

Rose snorted. "Dad, Scorpius is as gay as Dumbledore, we're not doing anything."

"Oh, yeah, it really looks that way to me, what with him in your bed and everything. Get up, Scorpius!"

"Yes, sir," Scorpius scrambled out from under the covers and got to his feet. "I'm sorry, Rose was just giving me some advice."

"Yes, dad, I was giving him some advice about getting with Albus," Rose explained.

The redhead blinked. "Albus? Albus Potter?"

"Yes," Rose replied, nodding slowly.

"Ginny's son, Albus?"

"Yes!" the young witch cried. "For Merlin's sake, dad, what part of this is troubling you?"

"Rose..." her mother said warningly, though Scorpius was sure he saw her mask a smile.

"Al is gay?" Rose's father looked baffled. "Do Harry and Ginny know?"

"No, nobody knows, not even Scorpius is meant to know but he's been in love with him for years so I'm using my insider knowledge to help him make some headway with this farce of a relationship."

"Rose!" the blond hissed.

"Years?" Mrs Granger-Weasley cocked her head. "Yes, well, I know how that feels," she said darkly, throwing a sidelong look at her oblivious husband, who looked as though he was still trying to digest the information that his nephew was a woopsie.

"Well, Albus invited Scorpius to the Slytherin Christmas party tonight and Scorp's been driving himself insane for days about what it means so I'm helping him," Rose continued.

Her mother nodded thoughtfully. "Do you think it's a date, Scorpius?"

Scorpius wished he could pull out his wand and _Avada_ himself. "I don't know. I don't think so," he mumbled.

"Albus said that he's looking forward to going to the party with him!" Rose said gleefully.

"Rose, shut up!" Scorpius said hotly. "We haven't established what he meant by '_I'm looking forward to it'_ yet."

"Don't be such a diva, Scorp," Rose brushed his outburst off easily and her mother chuckled.

"Ron, go downstairs and... do something," she gently pushed her husband towards the staircase before turning to face her daughter. "Rose, get a quill and some parchment. Scorpius, Floo back to your dormitory and bring a few sample outfits," she winked at him. "Don't worry, Potter men can be a bit dense about these things but we'll help you get your man."

-x-

Scorpius made his way down towards the dungeons nervously, unsure of the exact location of the Slytherin Common Room. He smoothed down his clothes – a pale grey fitted shirt with very fine white pinstripes and Muggle jeans, all Rose's choices – wishing for the hundredth time that evening that he had refused to let those crazy Weasley women anywhere near him. Rose had styled his hair into what she called a "just shagged" look as opposed to his usual sleek style and then to top it off she had pinned him down and applied eyeliner. Eyeliner! He glowered at the memory.

His nerves somewhat abated when he spotted a few Slytherins travelling in the same direction as he was, carrying something large and obviously heavy between them, a thick cloak draped on top of it. Whatever they were attempting to disguise, it clinked loudly as they walked so it didn't take Rowena Ravenclaw to work out that the boys were heading towards the party.

"Hurry up, if McGonagall sees us -"

"She's not going to find us if you keep your big mouth shut, Flint," the tallest boy snapped.

Scorpius followed behind for another hundred yards or so before the group came to an abrupt halt.

"What's the password?" a slight boy Scorpius recognised as his father's friend Theodore's eldest son asked.

The tall boy opened his mouth to reply before catching sight of Scorpius lurking at the back of them. "Malfoy?" he frowned. "You lost?"

"No, I was invited to the party," he replied coolly.

"Invited? By who?" a squat fifth year asked.

"By whom," the blond corrected. "Albus Potter asked me along."

"Potter?" Alastair Nott raised an eyebrow.

Scorpius nodded, producing the invitation from his pocket. "Is that alright?"

There was a rumble of consent and a few of the boys nodded. "'Course it is, you're a Malfoy," Nott replied. "By rights you should be one of us anyway."

The Ravenclaw gave a wry smile. "I'm sure you can imagine how my father took the news that I wasn't to be joining you in the Snake Pit."

His joke was met with appreciative smirks and he was quickly ushered into the dungeon, which could not have been more different from the bright and airy Ravenclaw Common Room. He gazed around the crowd of vaguely-familiar faces for a few moments, the pounding music rendering his ears useless, before a tap on his shoulder caused him to turn his head, where his eyes met the smiling face of Al Potter.

Scorpius' mouth became very dry as he took in the Slytherin's appearance and as his eyes roved over Albus' messy black hair and fitted shirt, he couldn't help but gawp.

"I'm glad you came," the raven-haired boy leaned over and shouted in Scorpius' ear, his warm breath caressing the side of his face. Scorpius felt his heart speed up. "Are you wearing make-up?"

Scorpius blushed. "Yes. It was all your cousin's doing!"

Al grinned. "I think you look amazing."

Scorpius felt his face burn. "It's very loud," he remarked but Albus shook his head, mouthing _I can't hear you_. The blond leaned closer, his chest touching Albus' arm. "The music is loud," he repeated and this time Al laughed.

"That's the point of a party!" he yelled, grinning. He mimed taking a drink and grabbed Scorpius' sleeve, pulling him through the rapidly-expanding crowd towards a table covered end-to-end in glass bottles. "What's your poison?"

Scorpius eyed the bottles warily before leaning over and selecting a Butterbeer. Al grabbed his wrist and Scorpius had to marvel at the fact that it didn't fall and smash the second the other boy's hand closed around his arm. He looked up to see the dark-haired boy shaking his head and waving a bottle of Firewhiskey in his face; Scorpius shook his head firmly, holding his Butterbeer up higher with a shy smile on his face. Albus shrugged and picked up a Butterbeer for himself.

"You don't have to stick to weak stuff just because I am," he yelled over the din.

"I'm not a big drinker either, I just thought I'd try it if you would," Albus shouted back.

"Later then?" Scorpius asked shyly, unsure of how long Albus would want him to stay.

"You're on!"

Scorpius was then introduced to Albus' friends, which was an incredibly awkward experience as nobody could understand a word of what anyone else was saying over the music, though through exaggerated hand gestures and a lot of repeating oneself, they got the gist of everything and it seemed as though everyone was having fun. At some point, Albus had inched over towards Scorpius and the blond was hyperaware of a hand that was tantalisingly close to his own, but the Slytherin made no further attempt to move closer so he tried his best to put it from his mind. After two hours, the Slytherins and their new friend Scorpius abandoned their attempts at conversation and a bottle of Firewhiskey was passed around. Scorpius thought that Albus looked slightly nervous as he raised the bottle to his lips but he took a large swig of the amber liquid nonetheless, raising it once more to drink deeply before grimacing and passing it to Scorpius. The blond took the bottle with shaking hands but, not to be outdone, downed three large mouthfuls in quick succession, wincing as the alcohol burned a path through his chest. As quickly as it came, the feeling subsided and a tingling warmth seemed to spread from within him; he turned to see Albus grinning lazily at him, obviously experiencing the same fuzzy side-effects as Scorpius. One by one, Al's friends gestured towards the makeshift dancefloor and slipped into the crowd, leaving the two boys alone, save for a large bottle of alcohol.

Their eyes met awkwardly and Scorpius felt his face colour but Albus didn't look away. He swigged from the bottle again and handed it to Scorpius, who took another mouthful without hesitation, his eyes never leaving the amazing boy in front of him. God, he was gorgeous. From his shaggy black hair, looking artfully tousled and falling forward into amazing, fathomless green eyes - eyes that could see right into Scorpius' soul if they tried - to the low-slung Muggle jeans he wore that accentuated every part of the boy's toned body. The song changed and he stoppered the bottle once more, setting it down on a large leather armchair; Albus cocked his head, looking at him questioningly. Emboldened by the Firewhiskey, Scorpius reached out for Albus' sleeve and tugged him towards the crowds of dancing bodies, moving as one to the sultry beat pounding through the air. Albus looked shy as they began to move, awkwardly at first but they soon found a rhythm and the embarrassment vanished. Surprisingly, nobody batted an eye as the two boys danced and Scorpius' heart thudded almost painfully in his chest as the song played out, the lyrics causing a blush to spread across his cheeks.

"_Baby, are you ready 'cause it's getting close, don't you feel the passion ready to explode? What goes on between us, no-one has to know, this is a private show. Do you know what you started? I just came here to party but now we're rocking on the dancefloor, acting naughty. Your hands around my waist, just let the music play. Boy, hand-in-hand, chest-to-chest and now we're face-to-face…"_

He met Albus' eye and they both looked away quickly but neither made any attempt to step back. The chorus of the song began, upping the tempo and Scorpius felt a warm hand slide up his side and across his back, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. His body crackled with electricity as an arm wound around his waist and pulled him closer into the hard body in front of him. Green met grey as their eyes connected and Scorpius felt himself melt into Albus, his brain stuttering and shutting down when another hand slid across his chest and up, coming to rest on the side of his face. His breathing was shallow and the music was drowned out by the rush of blood pounding in his ears as Albus' ebony lashes fluttered closed and splayed out like a delicate fan across his lightly-freckled cheeks. _This is it_, his brain managed to choke out. _This is the moment_. He pressed forwards slightly, bringing a shaking hand up to rest on Albus' hip, and then Albus' lips were on his and he was kissing him and it was perfect. He tasted of Firewhiskey and the smell of his aftershave filled Scorpius' senses; he found that his hand had migrated from the boy's hip and both of them were now tangled in the front of his shirt, white-knuckled as though terrified Albus would pull away. Scorpius made a contended noise against the Slytherin's mouth and suddenly found said Slytherin's tongue working its way into his mouth. The kiss was sloppy and unskilled but it was the best thing that had happened to Scorpius in his whole life and he was determined to keep it going until his lungs screamed for oxygen.

He pulled away from the brunet, breathing heavily, and the searching look in those green eyes caused his heart swell. He smiled shyly, a warm blush colouring his cheeks and was rewarded with an award-winning grin from Albus. He looked down at his feet for a moment, glancing back up when he felt warm breath on his ear.

"Would you like a tour?" Albus shouted.

Scorpius looked puzzled. _A tour?_ he mouthed.

Al leaned in once more, looking nervous. "I could show you my room."

Scorpius swallowed thickly. Albus wanted to show him his room. _His bedroom_. He felt a flutter of nerves as he nodded. "Okay."

-x-

_**A/N: **__Okay, so the song at the party was obviously "Please Don't Stop the Music" by Rihanna, which is not a Wizarding artist but that song makes me want to write slash, so I used it. I have no explanation as to why they had Muggle music at their party so please don't ask lol. Also, Ron barging into Rose's room was a nod to book seven when Ron barges into Ginny's room when Harry goes in there heehee. Hope you enjoyed xo _


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